Page 104 of Hold Still

Ozzy

“THANK YOU FORwhat you did out there,” Elaine says as she offers me ice for my eye and knuckles, after the cops took our statements.

“Looks like I’m not playing tonight,” I mutter, noting the bruises starting to form. Withdrawing the towel from my lip, I fish out my cell and gingerly text Aiden.

McKenna’s mom walks into the kitchen. “Oh, my.” She looks at my hands. “Keep ice on them, it’ll bring down the swelling.” She takes me in, her eyes cloudy. “I’m sorry, do I know you?”

Elaine sighs. I force my lips to tick upward. “I’m a friend of your daughter’s.”

“That’s nice,” she says. She pats my shoulder and leaves the room.

“Today’s not a good day,” Elaine explains. “And I’m sure all of this excitement didn’t help matters.”

“Dementia’s nasty.”

“Sure is. It’ll be much better for her, though, when McKenna can add a second shift nurse. Assuming everything gets straightened out.”

I try to piece together what she’s telling me. Elaine is Mrs. James’s day nurse?

She busies herself in the kitchen. Placing the towel over the handle of the oven, she says, “Thank you for protecting us from Matt. Needless to say, he’s done this family enough harm already.”

“I got that.”

She moves to stand next to me. After starting to speak a few times, she manages, “Listen, I shouldn’t be telling you this, but I think it’s important for you to know. McKenna’s wanted to hire a second shift nurse for her mother for a while now. She sold her condo to pay for my salary, but it can’t cover another nurse. If she wins this national competition, she’ll be able to hire someone. Heck, being named to the competition is drawing more interest in her business. She’s been interviewing nurses in anticipation.”

“If the other presentations from the Big Reveal party are any indication, McKenna’s got it in the bag.”

“I hope so.” She crosses her arms across her chest and takes a deep breath. “McKenna’s not here because she got called to an emergency meeting of the board.”

My one eyebrow furrows. “But she owns her own company and doesn’t have a board.”

She shakes her head. “No. The board of the Artist Avenue Adventure Project. Did you see the article in the tabloid?”

I swallow. “Yeah. I came over to talk with her about it, actually.” Maybe I’m overstating things. I did want to scream and yell and get to the bottom of the story.

“Well, so did the board. They called her in today before deciding whether to pull her name from consideration for the national competition.”

“What?” The legs of the chair scratch against the tile as I stand. “What do you mean?”

“Exactly what I said. They called an emergency meeting this morning.”

I stalk around the kitchen, walking from the mixer to the fridge and back to the table. Elaine watches my progress in silence. “There’s no way she killed her father.”

“Of course she didn’t. She was involved with that guy, Matt, and wanted to it break off with him. When he gave her trouble, she called her father to help. He came to bring her home and Matt killed him in the process.”

I let her words sink in. “I believe you. I need to find McKenna.” I turn on my heel and resume my pacing. Each step is like a thud on my heart, trying to tamp down my feelings for McKenna. Ones that keep resurfacing—of her laughing and challenging me and making me venture outside of myself. Of us on the dune buggies and at the skydiving experience. Singing to her from the stage. Making love with her.

I stop as if I hit a wall.

Making love. That’s what I did with McKenna. It was so much more than having sex. Realization that I’m in love with her crashes over me. “I love her.”

“Glad to hear it. Maybe you should stop making her life so much harder than it already is, then.”

I reach into my back pocket and pull out my phone again. “What’s the night nurse’s name McKenna wants to hire?” Elaine gives me a name and her agency’s phone number. Nodding, I call Aiden this time.

“What do you mean you’re canceling your concert tonight?”

I don’t have the patience for this. “I’m going to text you a nursing agency and an employee there. I need you to hire this woman, staring immediately, for McKenna’s mother.”

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